Accoya wood traffic bridge

RNS Number : 5479K

Accsys Technologies PLC

22 December 2008

 



NYSE Euronext Amsterdam: AXS

Accsys Technologies PLC

Accoya® Wood Traffic Bridge a Resounding Success

Accsys Technologies PLC and Titan Wood Limited, one of the company's wholly-owned subsidiaries, recently announced the successful transportation and installation of the world's first heavy traffic bridge made from the company's revolutionary Accoya® wood. The bridge, located approximately 125 kilometers northeast of Amsterdam in Sneek, the Netherlands, is chartered as a 60 tonne class bridge and will support the major Dutch thoroughfare A7. An official opening ceremony and celebration is planned for April 15 in Sneek. 

Spanning 32 meters and rising more than 14 meters in the air, this impressive structure will serve as a beautiful grand entrance to the city of Sneek. Commissioned after a 2005 design competition, the €3.5 million bridge was designed by Oak Architects and constructed by German firm Schaffitzel Holzindustrie.

When designing their masterpiece, OAK Architects specified environmentally friendly Accoya® wood due to its many benefits such as having a high strength to weight ratio, enhanced durability and dimensional stability, non-toxicity, and aesthetics. The Accoya® wood used in the bridge's spectacular design is not only beautiful, but strong as well, supporting and bearing the traffic load.

The Dutch government mandates that every bridge built provides a minimum service life of 80 years. Accoya® wood, which is produced only from source-certified sustainable species, including FSC (Forest Stewardship Council), was specified after a thorough testing and verification process. Project Manager, Sieds Hoitinga, said: 'Several independent European research institutes were contracted to test Accoya® wood's suitability for this project.  After rigorous testing, we found that its dimensional stability and incredible durability put it head and shoulders above other species and showed that it is suitable for laminating in large sections measuring 1080 x 1400 mm.  Accoya® wood also has superior UV resistance, is non-toxic and made from sustainably grown timber and these things were also considerations.'

Wood, such as Accoya® wood, naturally sequesters carbon helping to combat the effects of global warming. Due to its extended usable-life, Accoya® wood sequesters carbon for much longer than ordinary wood species, helping architects and builders to minimize the carbon footprint of their projects.

Akkerwinde, as the wooden bridge is known, represents a milestone not only for Titan Wood, but for the international building and civil engineering community as a whole. 

Willy Paterson-Brown, Executive Chairman of Accsys Technologies, said: 'Accoya® wood represents a new era in building technology. We are taking a traditional building material and improving it, which allows it to be used in new and innovative ways. Accoya® wood, a green product through and through, allows builders and architects to think out of the box, while at the same time supporting the environment.'

Typically used in applications such as doors and window frames, Accoya® wood is being used in an increasingly wide range of products including those of decking, cladding and structural building elements.

-Ends-

For further information, please contact:

Accsys Technologies PLC	William Paterson-Brown,  Executive Chairman	[phone]  [phone]
Parkgreen Communications	Leah Kramer/ Paul McManus [e-mail] [e-mail]	[phone] [phone] [phone]
Citigate First Financial B.V.	Wouter van de Putte / Laurens Goverse	+ 31 20 575 4080

Notes to Editors: 

Oak Architects, is a collaboration between architecture firms ONIX Architects and Achterbosch Architectuur. Hans Achterbosch, Haiko Meijer and Alex van de Beld joined together to design the wooden bridge.

Schaffitzel Holzindustrie (www.schaffitzel.de) is a construction and engineering firm which specializes in producing innovative structures, such as bridges, using timber building materials.

Titan Wood Limited (www.titanwood.com) is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Accsys Technologies PLC (www.accsysplc.com) group of companies. Accsys Technologies PLC is listed on the London Stock Exchange AIM market and on Euronext Amsterdam by NYSE Euronext, under the symbol 'AXS'.

Accsys Technologies PLC (www.accsysplc.com) - is an environmental science and technology company whose primary focus is on the production of Accoya® wood and technology licensing via its 100% owned subsidiary, Titan Wood (www.titanwood.com), which has manufacturing operations in Arnhem, the Netherlands, and a regional office for the Americas in Dallas, Texas. Accsys' operations comprise three principal business units: (i) the Accoya® wood production facility located in Arnhem, The Netherlands; (ii) technology development, focused on a programme of continuous improvements to the process engineering and operating protocols for the acetylation of wood which are currently under development and the development of technology for the acetylation of wood fibre; and (iii) the licensing of technology for the production of Accoya® wood across the globe.

Accoya® wood (www.accoya.info) is produced using a non-toxic process that effectively converts certified sustainably grown solid softwood and non-durable hardwood lumber into what is best described as a 'new wood species' via acetylation. Distinguished by its durability, dimensional stability and, perhaps most importantly of all, its reliability (in terms of consistency of both supply and quality), Accoya® wood is particularly suited to exterior applications where performance and appearance are valued. Unlike most tropical and temperate hardwoods, its colour does not degrade when exposed to ultraviolet light. Moreover, the Accoya® wood production process does not compromise the wood's strength or machinability. The combination of UV resistance, dimensional stability, durability and retained strength means that Accoya® wood offers a wealth of new opportunities to architects, designers, specifiers, builders and manufacturers. Leading applications include external doors and windows, shutters/shading, siding and cladding, decking, outdoor furniture/equipment and glulam beams for structural use. 

Wood Acetylation is a process, which increases the amount of 'acetyl' molecules in wood, thereby changing its physical properties. The environmentally responsible process protects wood from rot by making it 'inedible' to most micro-organisms and insects, without - unlike conventional treatments - making it toxic. It also greatly reduces the wood's tendency to swell and shrink, making it less prone to cracking and ensuring that when painted it requires dramatically reduced maintenance. Acetylated wood's increased durability offers major carbon sequestration advantages, compared to others woods and especially typical man-made building materials.  

ACCOYA and the Trimarque Device are registered trademarks owned by Titan Wood Limited and 

may not be used or reproduced without written permission

 

END

 

 

NRADKLFFVLBFFBZ